Thread: Backfiling behind a bulkhead

I have a customer that has a bulkhead at the year of there property boardering a small lake. It needs to be backfilled with about 6 tons of soil, leveled out and seeded.

When back filling against a bulkhead is there any type of liner that should be used between the soil and the bulkhead. And are there any special precautions or extra care that should be taken other than dropping the dirt, compacting, and leveling?

Block wall, poured concrete wall, old ,new, 8", 12"???? What kind of wall? What type of grade? What kind of soil? Are there and wing walls of "deadmen" installed in the bulkhead?

(scream) DRAINAGE!
lol
Make sure you have good drainage through the bulkhead. Pictures would really help here.
One thing to always consider is drainage. Water being held behind that wall can result in trouble. Clay soil has a multiplier due to its water retention and swelling capabilities. Lots of factors to consider.
Also - fill with gravel first, if possible. Use a french drain at the bottom. Drill weep holes in the wall, if possible.
Back-fill in 8" lifts and tamp as you go. A lot of times you have to fill 1/2 or less then put the water to it for a week and let it settle then come back and fill some more.
Over fill to allow for settlement. Nothing worse than adding soil on top of one year old grass because you did not allow for settlement. Google "the journal of light construction" - tons of great articles about backfill.
Gravel is a lot cheaper than topsoil and drains a whole lot better. example - backfill an 8' wall -- 4' of gravel depth topped with 4' of topsoil is a lot cheaper and easier to deal with than working 8' of topsoil -- and it produces a much better result, with drainage being a major consideration.